County: Kerry Site name: Knockeenduff
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 16E0071
Author: Laurence Dunne
Site type: Early Bronze Age and Iron Age
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 496926m, N 593541m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.084189, -9.503965
Archaeological monitoring and excavations at Knockeenduff, Killarney were undertaken on behalf of Kerry County Council in advance of the construction of a new burial ground following testing of the site carried out in July 2016 by Dr. Michael Connolly under same licence. In all thirty-two different cut features were recorded and excavated at the site in early spring of 2018, the largest of which were two linear ditch features. Other features comprised of seventeen pits, eight stake-holes, two post-holes, two hearths and an unusual gully-shaped feature.
A small assemblage of thirteen artefacts was recovered from five contexts at Knockeenduff. The assemblage includes: five Early Bronze Age pottery sherds; four stone artefacts (small sharpening stone, hammerstone, polishing stone fragment and possible anvil fragment); two flints (end scraper and debitage fragment) and two iron objects.
Excavations at Knockeenduff, Killarney identified two main phases of activity radiocarbon dated to the Early Bronze Age (EBA) and Iron Age (IA). The EBA was represented primarily by a series of pits and significantly artefactually by a small assemblage of carinated pottery of the Bowl Tradition. The Iron Age was represented by metalworking operations associated with smelting and smithing manifested by slag-bearing pits, hearths and anvil fragments. Other, possibly later, activity at Knockeenduff was represented by two linear ditches of similar morphology and orientation that most likely functioned as drainage ditches.
References:
Connolly, M. 2016. An Archaeological Testing Report Graveyard Site, Knockeenduff, Killarney, County Kerry, License Number 16E0071. Unpublished Report Kerry County Council.
3 Lios Na Lohart, Ballyvelly, Tralee, Co. Kerry
